Niigata

Soba making at Ueda no Sato

Prepare to be amazed at how good you are at making soba

Rufus Starbuck Aug 26, 2014 - 2 min read

<p>The tools of the trade. Don your apron and let's get started.</p>

<p>Work the soba flour and the slimy seaweedy stuff together for great taste and texture.</p>

<p>After a bit of kneading you can turn your ball of dough out onto the table.</p>

<p>A rolling pin as long as a broom handle....</p>

<p>...and some clever technique, and you soon have a thin square of dough.</p>

<p>A couple of folds and we are ready to cut.</p>

<p>The meanest knife you will ever wield.</p>

<p>Then your perfect (though maybe not uniform in my case) noodles are off to the kitchen.</p>

<p>To emerge ready to eat with some home-made pickles and delicious tempura.</p>

<p>Outside the restaurant are some canes showing the snowfall each year for the last couple of decades. Pretty interesting to see them side by side.</p>

<p>And there is even a bit of snow in the mountains above Shiozawa.</p>

There are many fine soba restaurants in the Uonuma area, it being something of a specialty. Soba noodles are delicious, and when cold, are great in the summer heat. A fun way to work up an appetite and learn a bit more about how they are made is to make your own. We went back to Ueda no Sato Restaurant in Shiozawa to try our hands at the art of soba making.

It is surprisingly easy, mainly due to the expert guidance of our chefs, and good fun. A bit of mixing, kneading, rolling and cutting and you are good to go. The noodles are whisked off to the kitchen while you take a seat in the converted farmhouse with a cool cup of tea. Your noodles (you can tell they are yours as they are all different widths!) emerge with some local vegetable tempura and some pickles. You will be amazed by what a good soba maker you are as you tuck into your delicious creation. An awesome lunch.

[An interesting visualization of the year by year snowfall outside the restaurant too.]